Martin Luther King Day gifts us a full slate of daytime college hoops with plenty of value to be had.
I've pinpointed three spots to capitalize on that run from morning to night.
Read below for college basketball best bets, including three NCAAB picks and predictions for Monday, January 19.
College Basketball Best Bets
| Game | Time (ET) | Pick |
|---|---|---|
  | 11 a.m. ET | |
  | 2 p.m. ET | |
  | 5 p.m. ET | |
Specific betting recommendations come from the sportsbook offering preferred odds as of writing. Always shop for the best price using our NCAAB Odds page, which automatically surfaces the best lines for every game. | ||
Northeastern vs. Monmouth
Two teams fresh off shocking results go head-to-head in an odd early start on a Monday. Northeastern, despite being severely shorthanded up front, stunned a potent Elon opponent over the weekend. Head coach Bill Coen admitted his Huskies, desperate to end a three-game losing skid, caught the Phoenix off guard with their pressure and energy early in the game.
Replicating that motivational advantage will be a challenge against Monmouth, which just posted its worst performance of the year – a 20-point home loss to Drexel. Rice deployed a few lesser-used reserves to send a message to some key contributors, which should light a fire under the Hawks today in a clear bounce-back spot.
Schematically, Monmouth must focus on one thing defensively: shutting down William Kermoury and Xavier Abreau, two kerosene scorers who combined for 53 of the Huskies’ 85 points against Elon. If they can stay connected to Kermoury and Abreau, their size advantage should take its toll on a battered and bruised Northeastern frontline.
Pick: Monmouth -3.5
Harvard vs. Penn
The Red and Blue square off against the Crimson today, a battle of two teams sitting with a 2-1 record in a bunched-up Ivy League standings. Harvard should probably be 1-2, but a feverish rally over the weekend against Princeton to force overtime lifted the Crimson over the Tigers. Despite being outplayed for 30 minutes, Harvard’s athleticism and depth wore on the shorthanded Tigers.
That edge will be negated in the spot today against Penn, who’s been quietly terrific on the glass in Ivy play. With TJ Power and Dalton Scantlebury in tandem up front, Penn currently boasts the league’s best overall rebounding rate, per KenPom. Ethan Roberts, Penn’s catalyst, is also finding his mojo after missing almost all of December with an injury.
The betting markets continue to shade lines against Penn, betting on the Red and Blue falling prey to inevitable 3-point shooting regression. However, KenPom’s line of 3 points is partial evidence that adjustment is already baked into the market price of 4.5.
Pick: Penn +4.5
George Washington vs. George Mason
The Revolutionary Rivalry tips off tonight in the nation’s capital, where two of the A-10’s deepest rosters will square off. George Mason’s season story arc feels like a repeat of last year, when Tony Skinn and his deep collection of gritty, defensive-minded wings found ways to win games night in and night out. However, the Patriots didn’t exactly print money in the betting markets, finishing the year with a mediocre 18-18 mark against the spread
To date, Mason sits at 9-8 against the number but is only 3-6 in its last nine contests. The return of Dola Adebayo has helped to some extent, but the Patriots appear to be approaching their peak value in the betting markets.
George Washington, while far less consistent, is ripe for an A+ home run effort tonight off an embarrassing home defeat against Davidson, a notoriously tricky thorn in the side of A-10 teams. The Revs simply couldn’t buy a shot from anywhere in that game, and dominated the ‘extras’, on the glass and in the turnover department.
This team brought the crux of its core back from last year, when Mason beat them three times, including the season-ending defeat in the conference tournament. If you’re a disciple of bounce-back and revenge spots in college basketball, GW qualifies as both.
Pick: George Washington +2.5
